The
ubiquitous Universal, or 'Bren Gun' Carrier,
is
a well-known hallmark of British and Commonwealth troops in World War 2.
Manufactured in Britain, Canada and Australia, the carrier served on every
front, in every formation, and in a variety of roles ranging from infantry
support to gun tractor to logistics and communications.

Specific
roles included Medium Machine Gun (with Vickers mounted on the engine deck),
3" / 4.2" Mortar (the mortars dismounted for firing), and Wasp flame thrower.
Models produced include the MkI and variants, the MkII and variants, the
U.S. T-16, and the Canadian Windsor carrier.

Ford
of Canada produced almost 29,000 universal carriers in WW2, along with
5,000 Windsor carriers. The Universals were powered by an 85hp 221 ci flathead
V8, while the Windsors and their American cousins, the T-16s, used the
same basic 95hp 239 ci engine as Ford CMP trucks. Weighing in at approximately
5 tons, the top speed on their all-steel 'dead' track was about 30mph.

Armour
thickness varied from approximately 3/8" in the front hull, to 1/4" sides.
The floor of the carrier was a weak point, having only 1/8" of mild steel,
which made the powerplant, gas tanks and crew extremely susceptible to
mine damage. Vehicle equipment stowage and crew depended on its allotted
role. For more information, please click on the thumbnails below.

Universal CarriersUniversal
Carriers came in two basic models throughout the war, the MkI* and the
MkII*. Let's look at the differences between them and in their employment...

T-16 CarriersThe
T-16 was an American-made offshoot of the Universal, also made by Ford.
It had several noticeable differences, including armour shape, number of
roadwheels and steering...

Windsor CarriersThe
Windsor Carrier was a late-war evolution of a proven design, but with an
extra roadwheel on each side and a longer body tub for greater stability...

The Loyd CarrierThe
Loyd Carrier was an early British derivation of the carrier concept which
some Canadian units used throughout the war...